HOW TO ACCESS INFORMATION

The process for making an FOI request for records is easy: 

• Put your request in writing.

  If you wish, you may use this form to submit your request to the Information Manager at the Public Authority you believe has the records you seek.

  Here is a list of all Public Authorities, Information Managers and their contact information.

• Provide enough detail to identify the records you seek.

  You do not have to tell anyone why you are making the request. However providing more information will help the Information Manager answer your request more fully.

• The Information Manager of the Public Authority will assist you if you need help filing your request.

  If you are not sure what to ask for, contact the Information Manager at the Public Authority for assistance or check to see if they have a Publication Scheme available in paper or on their website showing what types of records they hold.

• Remember, you can only ask for “records”

  Make sure what you ask for is a record, which includes correspondence, emails, faxes,    maps, plans, drawings, photographs, discs, tapes, sound tracks, film, microfilm or other media in which information is stored. If, for example, your request starts with a request for records:

•  “Explaining to me why….
•  “Proving to me that….
•  “Showing why I must …..
•  “Explaining all of my options…

…it probably is not a request for records; it is a request for answers.  If you are not sure what record you should ask for, word your request in the following manner :

• "I would like records relating to...

Alternatively you may ask the Information Manager to assist you in identifying the relevant record/s subject to your request.  

• The Public Authority may charge a fee for responding to your request.

  You may be charged a fee, but you can request that the fee be waived if you are unable to pay or for any other good reason. Once you have paid your fee, the Public Authority must disclose the records you requested within 14 days.

• The FOI Law requires the Public Authority to respond to your request in 30 days.

  You can expect a response within 30 days, or in 60 days, if the Public Authority has taken a 30-day extension because it reasonably requires more time to respond.

• The Public Authority may refuse access to some or all of the records.

  Under the FOI Law, a Public Authority is entitled to withhold certain information in certain circumstances. In those circumstances, you must be told the reasons why and the legal authority for doing so.

• You may appeal the matter if you are unhappy with the response you receive from the Public Authority.

  If you are denied access, do not receive a response or believe the Public Authority has mishandled your response you may appeal to the Information Commissioner, and can do so by clicking here»